Bound in Brotherhood
by Dr. Fantastic
Summary: Since the beginning of time, humanity has always struggled, fought, and bled for survival, somehow always keeping the flame of our existence burning brightly; and in the year 2452, the United Human Colonies is ready to expand it's Empire. This is the story of a man named Jaxon Hughes, and the soldiers of his squad who he is privileged to call,'His Brothers".


_Hi there! This is my first story I've ever written, so hopefully it isn't too much of a train wreck. Feel free to leave some constructive criticism in the Reviews, and if you just flat out hate me, feel free to leave that too, I won't cry… too much. Big thanks to all my friends who helped me get inspired to write this story!_

In the far reaches of the Universe, many light-years from the planet once known as, "Earth," lays a glowing sphere of life, known by the name of, "Eden," the capital of the United Human Colonies. Within this planet sits sprawls of urban metropolis, home to nearly a trillion inhabitants. Each and every individual on Eden is unique, and one person in particular, is about to make a decision that would change his life forever; unfortunately, Jaxon Hughes was having a terrible day. It all started in the morning as he rode the Sonic-Rail to work with a call from his girlfriend, she told him that she couldn't stay with a deadbeat anymore, and made sure to remind him never to call back. Jax stomached the breakup, he'd been through worse before; besides, most of what she'd said had been true anyways. Jax had a shitty life, a shitty job, a shitty house, I mean, for Christ's sake he lived with his mom! To top it all off, Jax was twenty-two years old, meaning life wasn't getting much better.

Somehow Jax managed to check into work five minutes late, and he was greeted by glares as he took his place at the assembly station. Jax's job was simple enough, put the head on the action, and pass it down the line. This job could easily be done by robots, yet the U.H.C had long since realized that the general populace needed jobs, especially those in the lower class. Jax furrowed his bro in frustration as he snapped another head onto yet another figure, more than likely this would give him joint problems when was older, but damn it was the only job he could find! Jax would have repeated this process for the next six hours if he hasn't been startled by a buzzer requesting his presence in the manager's office, something that was never good. Jax's boss was a sleazy tiny man, like a cliché con man from the holo-movies. "Ah, Jax, why don't you go ahead and take a seat," The man said with a reptilian smile, "As you may have noticed, major cuts have been made in salaries have been made, and in order to afford to keep a staff this size... We're going to have to lay you off. Please don't be offended by this, yet someone had to go, and you've been performing extremely under par lately. You can drop of your things at the front desk". Jax stayed in his chair in shocked silence, he wanted to punch the sleazy scumbag in the throat, and hang him from the rafters by that cheap, cliché tie, yet somehow Jax did none of these things, and simply got out of the chair and left, his former bosses words echoing in his mind the entire trip home.

It was late in the evening by the time Jax had arrived at his family's four room apartment, and the beer bottles on the porch alerted him that his parents too had returned early. Jax timidly entered then building, and hoped he could get to his room without being seen, yet he wasn't so lucky, "What're ya doing back so damn early?" His mother slurred, not even trying to hide her intoxication, "Don't tell me you lost another goddamn job!" Jax sighed as he said, "Look, it wasn't my fault this ti-," "You fucking did! How the hell are we supposed to pay for this place if you don't have a job? Huh? Jesus Christ, Jax, you'll never amount to anything!" By now Jax has heard enough, and he angrily stalked to his room and locked the door behind him, he was DONE being the loser, always having to lie about who he was out of sheer embarrassment, there just had to be something out there for him! Jax kicked his desk in frustration, and suddenly, an old holo-poster appeared of the U.H.C Marine Core bearing the logo,"Bound in Brotherhood," and at that moment, Jax knew that somehow, fate was telling him to seize this opportunity, and he'd gladly oblige.

Jax waited till early in the morning, and left as his mother snored on the couch, covered in several bottles of alcohol, he'd tell her of his decision eventually, but for now, she could sleep. It was raining outside as Jax made his way to the rail station, and he tucked his bag packed with belongings closer to his body, enjoying the feeling of the cool droplets coming into contact with his skin. Jax boarded the Sonic-Rail, and was surprised to find it rather empty, yet didn't mind being alone for what might be his last railway trip in a long time, yet in what seemed like no time at all, it was over. Jax got off the railway and headed for the U.H.C.M.C Registration offices, the facilities were older, and stuck out from the other buildings; yet the open sign flew bright as ever, and when he approached the doors, the slid open with ease. A single bored looking registration officer sat at the desk, and was the only inhabitant in the room save for Jaxon himself. The man quickly gathered his composure and smiled, "Are you really here to join? We never get any troopers from this area, but damn son we're glad to have ya!" Jax merely nodded along with the older man, and easily filled out the sign-up information placed in front of him. The man then had Jaxon raise his hand and answer a few questions, merely for ceremonial purposes.

"Do you swear to serve and protect the United Human Colonies so far as in your power lies?"

"I do."

"Do you promise to willingly lay down your life for those you are obligated to protect, including your fellow brothers in service?"

"I do."

"Then boy, welcome to the United Human Colonies Marine Core," The registration officer said with a grin, clasping Jaxon's hand in a strong embrace, "The next Space Elevator departs at oh nine hundred, you can still make it if all your gear is ready." Jaxon thanked the man once again for his kindness, and set off in a brisk jog to the Space Elevator Station, only a mere mile from the office, and as Jaxon ran, he never once looked back.


End file.
